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Iran talks critical, says Blair BBC The next two days will be a "fairly critical" phase in the
talks to free the 15 Royal Navy personnel captured by Iran, Tony Blair
has said. Earlier, a Tehran official said the issue could be resolved by negotiation. Iran accuses the crew of straying into its waters on 23 March. The British insist they were in Iraqi territory. Ali Larijani, of the Supreme National Security Council, hinted on Tuesday that a new phase in the talks with Britain had been started on Tuesday. Mr Larijani, who is also Iran's chief nuclear negotiator, told Iranian state radio: "The British government has started some diplomatic talks with the Iranian Foreign Ministry. They are only at the beginning. "If they continue this path they can change the situation logically... in such a way that the issue is resolved."Mr Blair said he had read the transcript of Mr Larijani's speech and it "seems to offer some prospect but the most important thing is to get these people back". He said from the start of the talks, Britain had two tracks - firstly to make Iran understand that "the pressure is there", and secondly that the "door is open" to diplomacy. Mr Larijani has previously said he was committed to solving the crisis through diplomacy, and that putting the crew on trial was "not a priority". But he insisted in an interview with Channel 4 News on Monday he was "100%" sure that the navy crew had been in Iranian waters when they were picked up in the northern Gulf on 23 March. "A guarantee must be given that such violations will not be repeated," he said. The UK insists they were in Iraqi waters after returning from searching a merchant vessel. British shadow foreign secretary William Hague has warned that the situation "requires renewed patience and calm"."We shouldn't get over-excited about an occasional positive signal. We shouldn't get overly depressed about an occasional negative signal," he said. It is understood that one area that has been under discussion between the UK and Iran is how future disputes over the contested waters may be avoided. Earlier on Monday, Iran said all 15 personnel had been filmed admitting they were in Iranian territorial waters at the time of capture by Iranian Revolutionary Guards. However, Iranian state radio said the new footage would not be broadcast on TV because of "positive changes" in the UK's stance. Previously unseen images of some of the crew, based on HMS Cornwall, were aired on Monday but their voices could not be heard. One of those seen for the first time was 20-year-old Arthur Batchelor, whose sister told the BBC she was relieved to see him looking "tired but fine"."It gave us a bit more reassurance," said Maggie Phillips, who lives in Plymouth. The Foreign Office is standing by its view that the crew, serving on HMS Cornwall, which is based in Plymouth, were detained against their will in Iraqi territory. "We have not had consular access, we have made it quite clear they were seized in Iraqi waters, and we want them released," a spokesman said. So far, Iranian TV has shown footage of four of the crew making statements in which they said they had been in Iranian waters. The Foreign Office has said showing the group on TV is "unacceptable" and it had "grave concerns" over the circumstances under which any statements were made. |
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